Date/Time
Date(s) - February 1, 2021 - April 25, 2021
9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Exhibition Checklist for Shattering Perspectives [PDF]
Installation Images for Shattering Perspectives
Shattering Perspectives: A Teaching Collection of African Ceramics is a collaborative, student generated exhibition exploring ceramic arts from across the African continent through vessels and objects from the Gregory Allicar Museum’s permanent collections.
The exhibition features 141 objects by artists from 57 cultures, representing 19 countries across present day Africa. Shattering Perspectives takes a unique approach to discussing African ceramics through the lens of a teaching collection and was conceived by Colorado State University students enrolled in an art history seminar course in Spring 2020. The students, who also served as co-curators, authors, and exhibition designers, explored the politics and poetics of museum display while delving into the methods, functions, and symbolism surrounding pottery, as well as the roles of ceramic artists across the African continent. The result is a dynamic exhibition that presents unique viewpoints on approaching and discussing these fascinating objects through hands-on engagements and theoretical dialog.
The exhibition is organized around the themes of art v. artifact, misconceptions about the “unknown” African artist, pot making techniques across the continent, and visual expressions of identity. These perspectives present viewers with insights on working with a teaching collection and the resulting dialog that develops through encounters with art objects and critical texts.
An online symposium will be held in conjunction with this exhibition, Friday and Saturday, February 12–13. Visit our program page for more details.
This project is made possible in part through a grant from the Lilla B. Morgan Memorial Endowment, which works to enhance the cultural development and atmosphere for the arts at Colorado State University. This fund benefits from the generous support of all those who love the arts. Additional support is provided by the FUNd Endowment at CSU. Museum operating support is generously provided by Colorado Creative Industries. CCI and its activities are made possible through an annual appropriation from the Colorado General Assembly and federal funds from the National Endowment for the Arts.